Vernon, from where Arianegroup will transfer to Germany the production of one of the engines of the Ariane 6 rocket, "
will remain one of the major French space sites
" and an additional 40 million euros will be invested there, assured Friday. the Minister of the Economy.
Read also Job cuts, a necessity in the face of American competition, according to the boss of Arianegroup
"
The Prometheus engine, that is to say the future engine for European space launchers, will be produced in Vernon and we will immediately release 40 million euros so that there are test benches that are carried out. in Vernon and that we can ramp up production of the Prometheus engine in Vernon,
”Bruno Le Maire told Public Senate.
The transfer of the production of the Vinci engine, the re-ignitable engine of the upper stage of the launcher, from Vernon (Eure) to an Arianegroup site in Germany is the result of an agreement with Berlin reflecting the rise in power of the Germany in the European space budget.
The project, which will take several years, was presented by the management of Arianegroup on Thursday to the unions in parallel with a plan to cut jobs for 600 people in France and Germany.
Read also Franco-German space agreement on Ariane 6
In addition to the production of Prometheus in Vernon, "
we also obtained guarantees on Ariane 6 and on the fact that there is a European preference for the launch of European satellites on Ariane 6, it is also a guarantee of industrial load for Vernon
”, assured Bruno Le Maire.
"
In total by 2024-2025, it is more jobs that we want on the Vernon site after the departure of the Vinci engine
," he said, referring to "
a positive balance of around a hundred jobs approximately
”.
Sixty-five people are currently working on the Vinci engine in Vernon, he said.
The site employed 962 people at the end of 2020, according to CFE-CGC central union delegate.
